dissemination in the 1990’s. Like the poetry and
drama of the decade, a new energy infused the fic-
tion and nonfiction of the 1990’s and spilled over
into the opening years of the twenty-first century, in
literature that was more open, inclusive, and alive.
Further Reading
Heilbrun, Carolyn G. “Contemporary Memoirs: Or,
Who Cares Who Did What to Whom?”The Ameri-
can Scholar68, no. 3 (Summer, 1999): 35-42. Dis-
cussion of the development of recent women’s
memoirs as a unique genre.
Lauter, Paul, et al., eds.The Heath Anthology of Ameri-
can Literature: Volume E—Contemporar y Period, 1945
to the Present. 5th ed. Lexington, Mass.: Heath,
- Still the best sampling of the diverse range
of contemporary American literature.
Millard, Kenneth.Contemporar y American Fiction: An
Introduction to American Fiction Since 1970. New
York: Oxford University Press, 2000. Fresh analy-
sis and interpretation of more than thirty texts, in-
cluding recent works by Roth, Updike, Jen, and
Alexie.
Muller, Gilbert H.New Strangers in Paradise: The Immi-
grant Experience and Contemporar y American Fiction.
Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1999.
Hijuelos, Kincaid, Tan, and Mukherjee are
among the many ethnic writers Muller discusses
against the historical and sociological forces
shaping recent American life.
Prosser, Jay, ed.American Fiction of the 1990’s. New
York: Routledge, 2008. Collection of essays on in-
dividual writers and geographical, ethnic, tech-
nological, and sexual topics by a range of aca-
demic writers.
Rowe, John Carlos, ed. Post-nationalist American
Studies. Berkeley: University of California Press, - Nine contributors propose new approaches
to the study of multiethnic American culture.
Schlager, Neil, and Josh Lauer, eds.Contemporar y
Novelists. Detroit: St. James Press, 2001. Massive
project profiles hundreds of contemporary nov-
elists, including many Americans.
David Peck
See also Albee, Edward; Alvarez, Julia; Amazon
.com; Angelou, Maya;Angels in America; Audiobooks;
Barry, Dave; Book clubs; Censorship; Chick lit;
Children’s literature; Faludi, Susan; Grafton, Sue;
Grisham, John; Harry Potter books; Kelley, Kitty;
King, Stephen; Kingsolver, Barbara; Komunyakaa,
Yusef; Literature in Canada; McCourt, Frank;
McMillan, Terry; McNally, Terrence; Morrison, Toni;
Palahniuk, Chuck; Poetry; Project Gutenberg;
Proulx, Annie; Rice, Anne; Rock Bottom Remain-
ders, The; Roth, Philip; Sontag, Susan; Spoken word
movement; Strand, Mark; Theater in the United
States; Updike, John;Vagina Monologues, The;Wal-
lace, David Foster. Lollapalooza
The Event Touring music festival
Date 1991-1997Unlike previous rock festivals, Lollapalooza represented a
1990’s sensibility that music festivals should be accessible to
audiences in a variety of locations. The eclectic tour also
helped define the word “alternative” in relation to a lifestyle
and not just a music genre.At the time of the first Lollapalooza tour in 1991,
American rock festivals had been around for de-
cades. In the post-MTV 1990’s, fans were more dis-
criminating and desired another outlet besides the
aging music-video format to keep them in touch
with the music that defined the last generation to
come of age in the twentieth century.
Lollapalooza was the creation of Perry Farrell,
singer for the alternative rock band Jane’s Addiction
and Porno for Pyros. Although often thought of as a
rock festival, Lollapalooza included a range of acts,
including the hip-hop group Arrested Develop-
ment, the rap-metal band Rage Against the Ma-
chine, and rap artist Ice-T’s metal band, Body
Count.
The precursor to Lollapalooza was A Gathering
of the Tribes, a two-day music festival in California.
That event paved the way for the event that Lolla-
palooza eventually became, with a broad range of
styles offered by the performers—from Queen
Latifah to Iggy Pop. Like Lollapalooza, it demon-
strated itself to be a reflection of a number of Ameri-
can subcultures. As a result, the final form of
Lollapalooza was that of a traveling show, one that
would draw in hundreds of thousands of music fans
from across the United States and Canada.The Music While the musical acts featured at
Lollapalooza represented a range of styles, what theyThe Nineties in America Lollapalooza 525